1.27.2017

Well, this is going to be an interesting year for Albany, NY indeed. With the mayoral election coming up, it appears that an African American woman has thrown her hat in the ring to challenge the incumbent, Kathy Sheehan, who was elected in 2012.In the interest of supporting Black men and women to run for political office, I'm posting this article that originally appeared in the theAlt.com - a local political publication out of Albany, NY.

In addition to her bid for Mayor, City Council incumbent, Corey Ellis, a two-time mayoral challenger and former 3rd Ward Councilman, is running for Albany Common Council President. “I want to give people hope with my vision for where this city can go.” Ellis' announcement came after Mayor Kathy Sheehan’s State of the City address.It is imperative that more and more Black men and women begin to run for political positions in their local communities - it is equally important that communities begin to get in the practice and habit of getting to know these candidates and begin supporting them, both financially and with their votes. For those who are lacking in the big bucks to do so, remember that we had a president who ran on the contributions of the smallest amounts of money as well as funds from major donors. There should be no excuse for not supporting the candidates who may be pivotal in providing their constituents with much needed legislation. And it's the prelude to taking back the Congress in 2018 - if we start now, we can build the muscle and momentum we are going to need to kick out the republicans and cut the apparent onslaught of the predator in chief who is bent on reversing every positive thing that has happened for Black people over the past 8 years.As information comes to me on Black candidates running for office on the Democratic line I will post them in my Blog - ECLECTICALLY BLACK NEWS - We've so much to do over these next four years if we are to survive this melee of madness that has been allowed to beset the US. It's going to be interesting to see if we've learned our lessons from the drubbing we received during the recent Presidential election, where we allowed divide and conquer, fake news, and political unsophistication to sit out what has turned out to be the most important election in the history of the US, and possibly the battle for the soul of America - Literally and spiritually. Stay Blessed & ECLECTICALLY BLACKGloria

NEWS

McLaughlin announces mayoral bid, offers few policy details

David Howard King | Tuesday, January 17 2017

0

photos by David Howard King

On
Saturday (Jan. 14) Common Council President Carolyn McLaughlin
officially

announced
her bid to become mayor of Albany. McLaughlin’s challenge to Mayor

Kathy
Sheehan and the possibility of a number entrants into the race could
mean

Albany
is treated to what has mostly been a rarity in the city since the
early 1900s–

a
competitive mayoral race including a sitting incumbent.

Albany
is a city defined by its mayors. Erastus Corning ruled Albany from
City Hall

as
face of the Democratic machine from 1942 to 1983. His successor
Thomas Whalen

served
as mayor from 1983 to 1993 and Gerald Jennings served from 1994 to
2013.

Kathy
Sheehan became Jennings’ successor in 2013 after defeating former
councilman

Corey
Ellis in the Democratic Primary. This fall Albanians will decide
whether

Sheehan
will get to build a legacy of her own or if Albany politics have
become

more
fluid. Certainly things have changed since the time of Erastus
Corning.

The
Democratic Machine that won votes through patronage has been mostly

eradicated.
While Jennings kept tight control over the local party apparatus he

found
himself losing that grip towards the end of his time in office.
Sheehan also

didn’t
come up as part of the Democratic political apparatus–she spent
most of her

life
in business only successfully winning the position of city treasurer
in 2009.

She
left that post to become Mayor.

Sheehan
faces a much more fractious Democratic Party. It is expected that she

could
find herself up against up to three challengers in the Democratic
Primary.

West
Hill activist Marlon Anderson is expected to run and Councilman Frank

Commisso
Jr. is reportedly weighing a bid.

For
now though, it is clear that she has one opponent–Albany Common
Council

President
Carolyn McLaughlin who has served on the Common Council since 1997.

McLaughlin
ran unsuccessfully for the 108th Assembly District seat in 2012.

McLaughlin
was voted out of her position of Democratic County Chair last
September

in
what appeared to be a move by Sheehan supporters to shear away some
of her influence.

The
Alt interviewed
McLaughlin in her office on South Pearl Street in Albany last week.

She
made it clear that she sees herself as deserving of the seat because
of the years she

has
lived in the city and the 20 years she’s served on the Common
Council.

Asked
what disagreements she has with the Mayor Sheehan she said, “As
Council

President
for the last three years I’ve been very frustrated in that I
believe the level

of
collaboration, of working with this mayor did not materialize. Some
of the things

that
have come through the Council have frustrated me, such as the red
light cameras

and
the trash fee. The people didn’t want them and you have to listen
to the people.”

McLaughlin
said referring to a policy put in place under Sheehan where owners of
small

apartment
buildings are charged a fee for trash collection and the installation
of